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To be worthwhile, club meetings need to be well planned, informative, and provide real learning content to keep members interested, growing, and participating.  There are several sub-topics listed below that deal with ways of accomplishing this.  Please feel free to put in tips that work for your club, or add a new sub-topic.

Create Interest

What's your idea?

It doesn't hurt to send out an Email reminder of the meeting, with a teaser about a topic that will be discussed.

Have An Agenda

Bring in a printed agenda, that details the standing routine.  A suggested outline could be:

• Call to order-start on time!
• Minutes
• Treasurer's report
• Committee reports
• Educational segment
• Individual stock reports
• Old business
• New business including stock presentations
• Announce training opportunities
• Adjourn on time!

It can be helpful if the agenda includes the expected time frame for each item. Of course, the President can be flexible, if there is a legitimate need to spend more time on something. But, having these guidelines on paper helps the President keep things on track! 

Provide Education

Usually the Junior Partner/Vice-President handles this duty, though it can be a separate office in your club.  This member can do it alone, or delegate assignments on a rotating basis.  You always learn more teaching than listening.

Educational segments should be short, about five minutes, unless the club elects extra time for a more in depth study of a desired topic.  A handout is helpful, especially on basic topics.

If your club is new or has several new members, cover basic elements like EPS, PE, Dividends, Upside/Downside, Growth vs. Value, Sectors, Diversification, etc.

More seasoned clubs can explore elements of the SSG, Portfolio Management, When to Sell, Net resources, Software for stock studies, etc.  Power Point Presentations can be effective if you meet where they can be shown.

Involve Everyone

Spread around the offices and committee assignments, and rotate them every year within reason.  At the very least, assign each person one stock they are to cover and report on briefly at each meeting.  Rotate stock assignments every year or so, as well, to avoid one person 'falling in love' with a particular company, and miss some trends that need attention.

• In our club (Tuesday Investment Club - Cleveland, Ohio), here is how we rotate stock assignments, at the beginning of each year.

At the first meeting of the year, we pass around a box, with slips of paper - one for each of our current stock holdings. Every member selects one piece of paper. (Officers are exempt from selecting a stock to follow.) If a member happens to select a stock that she followed the previous year, she puts it back and selects another.

When the selection is complete, these are the new stock assignments for the year!

Have Fun!

You don't have to be a stand-up comic, but don't be all stiff and formal.  Loosen up, and laugh, it always makes people go home feeling good.